Unova, Here I Come!
by YinYang9000
Summary: When 15 year old Luke goes on a Pokemon journey across Unova, he did expect to make some friends, meet new Pokemon, and collect all the gym badges. What he didn't expect, however, was to do that having to fight 17 instead of 8 gym leaders, have a terrorist organization at every turn and some twists and turns along the way. Note: I don't own Pokemon. I need no more OCs. :)
1. Chapter 1

**Chapter One**

In his dream he sees a girl, a fairly tall one about his height with shining green eyes and long brown hair. She walks up to him, shaking him softly, calling out his name.

"Luke…? Luke… Luke!"

Then he is plummeting, overcome by a brief feeling of weightlessness. He then comes face to face with a hard, unforgiving surface. It was then he realizes it is in fact not a simple dream, but a reality. Luke groaned as he sat up groggily, instinctively reaching up to rub his eyes. He instantly realized his mother had approached him, shaking him in an almost futile attempt to wake him up. It was then he had rolled off of the bed and his head hit the hard wood floor. Luke, puzzled as to why his mother was waking him up (she had not done so since he was 10), glanced up at the clock. The time on his alarm clock read 6:30 in bright green. Astonished, Luke focused his gaze back on his mother with sleepy eyes.

"Mom… It's too early to get up. Why am I up anyway?" he questioned.

His mother simply chuckled. "I'm honestly surprised, Luke, you forgot what today was already? Today's the day that was scheduled a week ago so you can get your new Pokémon!"

Upon hearing that, Luke's eyes shot open, and he stood up almost immediately. Today Luke, fifteen-year-old Pokémon trainer-to-be was to receive a Pokémon from Professor Juniper's assistant Bianca. "What? Aw man, I almost forgot! Thanks, Mom!"

Without giving it a second thought, Luke rushed into the next room, threw on his tennis shoes, and reached for the door handle.

"Luke…" he heard his mother call.

Luke paused, looking quizzically at his mother. She sighed and shook her head as she walked up to him.

"You aren't leaving the house looking like that are you?" she quizzed.

Luke looked down, he was still in a shirt and boxers, and he couldn't _begin _to imagine what his hair looked like. Luke looked up at his mother slightly embarrassed, grinning sheepishly.

"Oops." Luke muttered.

His mother cracked a smile. "Alright, Luke, get ready while I make you some pancakes. You still have 25 minutes, don't worry."

Luke nodded in agreement. "Thanks, Mom." His mother walked out of the room, and he could hear her retrieving the necessary cooking materials needed. Soon enough, Luke began to get ready. As he prepared himself for what may be the most important day of his life, Luke's mind wandered to other things. _I wonder if Nathan's doing well, I haven't seen him since last Friday… I wonder who I'm gonna pick as a starter. Who will I meet? I wonder if…_ Luke's thoughts trailed off, and he began to concentrate more on fixing his sandy blond hair. He glanced at the mirror above his nightstand; he didn't look half bad compared to what he did look like when he woke up. He was five feet four inches tall and had thrown on some jeans and a navy blue tee shirt, along with a navy cap with a white Poke Ball symbol on it. His blue eyes scanned himself once more just to see if anything else needed to be done, but he began to think about the day ahead of him. However, his mind inevitably drifted again to his friend, when lunch was going to be ready, etc. But, his cogitations were interrupted by his mother calling him to the dining room to eat. Luke, who had been ready to eat for several minutes now, smiled. "Coming!" he replied.

Minutes later, Luke leaned back in the wooden chair, his hunger sated for the time being. But he had somewhere to go, places to be, and a Pokémon to receive. Luke stood up, raring to initiate his Pokémon journey, and put on a jacket hanging off the coat rack. His mother waved to him, nostalgic thoughts filling her mind.

She sighed. "I remember when I went on a Pokémon journey. It was a whole lot of fun, being with your Pokémon and friends. But be careful, Luke, alright?"

Luke flashed his mom a thumbs up and nodded, and then walked out the He took in the familiar site of his home town Aspertia City and breathed in the fresh air. _I can't wait until I finally get my first Pokémon. Unova, here I come!_

Nathan, fifteen-year-old Pokémon trainer-to-be had, unlike Luke, not forgotten that he was to receive a starter Pokémon from Bianca. He had been up right up at 6:30, and had made some toast for himself. Minutes later, Nathan's mother had walked in right as he was done eating.

She greeted him with a yawn. "Good morning, Nathan, are you ready to start your journey?"

Nathan nodded without hesitation. "Of course, I've been ready since I woke up."

His mother smiled at him wryly. "But you're not going to go out like that, are you?" she inquired.

Nathan rushed back into his room, instantly recalling he had never put on clothes for the day. He hurriedly put some jeans, a green tee shirt, and a black cap with a green Poke ball symbol on his five feet three inch figure before turning back to go into the kitchen. Walking back to the door, he grabbed a black jacket off of the coat rack and put it on. He shook his head and chuckled.

"Thanks again, Mom."

Nathan's mother nodded silently, but smiled at his outgoing personality. "No problem, just go enjoy your journey, alright? Oh, and tell Luke I said hi!"

Nathan nodded in consent, then opened the door, shut it, and began to walk through his home town Aspertia City. _The time to get my new Pokémon is almost here! Unova, here I come!_

Lucille, always called Lucy because of her disliking for her actual name, sat silently in the train car. Lucy was five feet two inches and sported long blond hair held up in a pony-tail, and had blue eyes and pale skin. She also wore blue jeans and a simple white tee shirt with a blue Poke ball symbol on the back. Lucy also had rectangular blue rimmed glasses perched on her nose, giving anyone who looked at her a sense that she was a well-studied girl. Soon she would arrive at Aspertia City so she could receive her new Pokémon, and she was ecstatic. _I wonder what kind of people I'll meet and what kind of Pokémon I'll use for my team… _She was broken out her thoughts though by the overhead speakers. **'Attention! The train is now arriving in Aspertia City!' **Lisa stood up, stretching from the ride there, and made her way to the front of the car. The train soon came to a stop with a screech coming from the wheels, and Lucy stepped off.

Lucy saw a set of stairs nearby and concluded they would lead her to the main area of Aspertia City, so she followed them. She turned out to be correct, and Lucy ended up on the outer edge of Aspertia City. Lucy shielded her eyes from the bright sunlight, and began to look around to see if she could spot _anyone_. With some luck, she managed to locate an elderly woman sitting on a wooden bench who was feeding some Pidove that had crowded around her feet. Lucy smiled as she saw the little pigeon Pokémon peck furiously at the ground to get more food. She strode over to the lady, accidentally scaring away the Pidove around her.

Lucy grinned sheepishly. "S-Sorry, ma'am, I didn't mean to scare away those Pidove."

The elderly women just beamed at her. "It's quite alright, dear, I'm actually kind of glad you did… Now what can I do for you?"

"Umm, I was wondering if you could point me towards the Aspertia Outlook. I'm supposed to meet somebody there today," Lucy replied. The old women simply pointed a small hand to her left, her finger pointing at the tallest place in Aspertia City. Lucy smiled in her direction. "Thank you, ma'am, I appreciate it."

"Anytime, dear," came her reply. Lucy was filled with new excitement now, she was about to receive her first Pokémon! _Unova, hear I come!_


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter Two**

Still pumped about the fact that he was to receive a Pokémon from Bianca, Luke ran through Aspertia City with excitement flowing through him. He had to dodge left and right from time to time because of some passerby on the streets, shouting 'Sorry!' as he passed them. Luke looked up to see the Aspertia Lookout was in sight. He cheered mentally; he was almost there. It was then Luke caught something out of the corner of his eye, something very fast. His heart raced. _That's strange; we haven't had anyone on this half of the city up this early before… _Deciding to check it out because he still had 5 minutes to get to Bianca, Luke veered right and started to chase after the person he saw.

Nathan could not wait to get his starter Pokémon, he had waited for 3 three months to get it and now he could! He was running through the streets of Aspertia City, enjoying the crisp morning air. After a minute of running, Nathan was able to catch glimpses of the Aspertia Outlook from behind the buildings and cafes. It was then he heard some steps nearby, pounding the cobblestone roads of Aspertia. Puzzled, Nathan paused, beginning to look in the area around him. _Weird, nobody's ever out here this early… _Deciding to shrug it off, as he was probably overreacting, Nathan resumed his travelling to the Outlook.

Lucy, unlike Luke and Nathan, was calmly walking through Aspertia City, enjoying the cool December weather. She was still pondering what she was going to choose as a starter Pokémon, then came up with the conclusion that she liked them all, and would get whatever the other two trainers did not. Lucy's excitement was increasing steadily as she moved closer to the Outlook. It was then Lucy caught a glimpse of a boy in the distance, one with a cap and a blue shirt, jogging in the same direction she was. _He must be one of the Pokémon trainers going to receive a Pokémon; I've got to catch up with him. _Lucy now decided to pick up the pace, and began a steady jog to the Aspertia Outlook.

Luke was still pursuing the person he had spotted, trying to keep up with his speed. Luke decided to put on an extra burst of speed, finally catching up to the mystery person. Upon seeing the brown hair and green shirt, Luke immediately realized who it was and laughed silently about his mistake. "Hey, Nathan, look behind you!" The boy with brown hair and a green shirt halted and turned around, and his face instantly lit up. "Luke! How's it been lately, I haven't seen you for a while?" Luke smiled and shrugged. "Eh, I'm just fine. How about you?" he inquired. Nathan replied. "I'm just fine. And I'm so excited about getting our Pokémon today, too." Luke nodded. "Same with me, I'm pumped. Well, let's get going. The Outlook's only a minute away, after all." Nathan shot a glance at his best friend. "Race ya," he challenged with a smirk. Luke shot him the same look. "You're on." After that, the two friends raced down the road, only a minute to go until they reached the Outlook.

One minute later, Luke and Nathan ran up the stairs that led to the Aspertia Outlook and then broke out into a fit of pants from their race. Nathan planted a hand on his knee and addressed Luke. "You… were always… faster than me…" he commented. Luke was about to reply, but he was cut off by a woman's voice. "Oh, you must be the new Pokémon trainers!" Luke and Nathan turned their heads to be greeted by a woman slightly taller than Luke. She wore green pants that stopped after the knees, a white shirt over a black one, an orange jacket, and a green hat placed on her head. Her face was framed by her blond hair, and in front of her green eyes were red-rimmed glasses. She smiled genuinely at the two and walked over. "Hi, I'm Bianca, Professor Juniper's assistant! You must be Luke and Nathan, right?" The two boys nodded, slightly taken aback by her bubbly nature. Bianca turned around soon after, grabbed a briefcase off of the ground, and then turned around to face the boys again. "In this briefcase are the three starter Pokémon's poke balls. I would let you two choose one, but the other trainer-to-be is not here yet," Bianca explained. She sighed. "Oh well, at least we have a nice view~!" Nathan chuckled at Bianca's constantly happy attitude and motioned for Luke to follow him. Luke simply nodded and trailed him to the edge of the Outlook. The view was stunning to say the least. The sun was on the horizon and cast an orange glow on the hills and trees below, casting shadows everywhere. It was just simply amazing to feel on top of the world and have such a high up view of everything that Luke, Bianca, and Nathan ended up forgetting about the trainer that wasn't there yet. That is, until they heard a girl standing behind them clear her throat.

Nathan, Luke and Bianca turned around to come face-to-face with a girl with blond hair, blue eyes, glasses, jeans, and a white shirt on. Bianca squealed and clasped her hands together. "You must be Lucille the other Pokémon trainer! Come over here!" Luke could've sworn he saw Lucille frown, but he gave it no further thought. Lucille nodded and strode over to Professor Juniper's assistant. Bianca placed a hand on Lucille's shoulder and pulled her closer, then motioned to Luke and Nathan. "Lucille, these are your fellow Pokémon trainers Nathan and Luke. Nathan and Luke, this is Lucille." Nathan smiled and said 'Hi'. Luke smiled as well and said 'Nice to meet you.' Lucille just nodded and smiled to both of them. Bianca spoke up again. "But let's get down to business, shall we? In this briefcase I have three Poke balls, each of them containing a Pokémon. In one of them is the grass Pokémon Snivy, in another the water Pokémon Oshawott, and in the final one is the fire Pokémon Tepig. Got it?" Bianca explained. The three trainers-to-be nodded. Bianca beamed once again, her bubbly attitude ever-present. "Alright, now you three work out who can pick first and I'll just wait."

Bianca then opened the briefcase containing the Poke balls, set it down on the ground, then stood back up. Luke took the cue to begin and motioned to Lucille. "Ladies first," he said with a slight smirk. Lucy simply rolled her eyes and countered with her own smirk, before stepping up to the briefcase. She paused in front of the briefcase, still mulling over which Pokémon to choose as her lifelong partner. Finally, after what seemed to be an eternity, Lucy bent over and picked up the Poke ball with a flame symbol on it – Tepig's ball. "I choose Tepig," she stated with finality. That left Luke and Nathan. Luke glanced at Nathan. "I know you wanna go first, Nathan, I don't mind at all." Nathan looked at Luke with a puzzled expression on his face. "Really, I can? Are you sure about this?" Nathan inquired, making sure he heard Luke right. Luke just gave him a short nod. Nathan thanked him, and then sat down in front of the briefcase. "I choose…

"…Snivy!" Nathan decided, picking up the Poke ball with a leaf symbol on it. "What do ya know? I wanted Oshawott in the first place," Luke informed, bending over to pick up the Poke ball with a water symbol on it. It was then Bianca decided to speak up… again.

"Alright, now that you have your Pokémon, I want you to have these!" Bianca opened the green bag she had resting on her hip and began to rummage through it. She frowned as she sorted through her stuff some more, that is, until her expression lightened up.

"Here they are…" she mumbled. Bianca pulled out three red devices, each of them with a flashing green light in the corner. "These are the Pokedexes, devices used to store data on any captured or seen Pokémon. The Professor wanted me to give these to you so you could collect data for her research, but at the same time you can use these to check any information on your Pokémon. Now… here's one for each of you!" Bianca handed one to Lucille, then to Nathan, and Luke. "Well, that's it! You are free to begin your journey!" Bianca concluded. Smiles spread across the three Pokémon trainers' faces; they were joyous to finally be trainers. "Thanks, Bianca!" they said as they ran down the stairs. As soon as the trio ran down the stairs, Lucy stopped them. "I didn't want to say this is front of Bianca, but NEVER call me Lucille, I hate that name. Just call me Lucy, please."

Nathan shrugged. "Alright," he replied. Luke nodded to show he accepted that. "I'll call you Lucy. After all, I had a feeling you didn't like that name when you frowned earlier." Lucy blushed slightly. "I-I did?" Luke chuckled. "Yep, you did." After that, it was silent; nobody knew what to do next. That is, until Nathan spoke up.

"Hey guys, I have a great idea!" Nathan exclaimed. "And what might that be?" Lucy asked with a hint of skepticism. Nathan stepped backwards and pointed at Luke. "Battle me."


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3**

Luke smirked. "Wanting to challenge me already, huh? Alright, bring it."

The two walked away from each other until they were about 10 feet away from the other, and then called out their Pokémon.

"Snivy, go!"

"Go, Oshawott!"

On Luke's side of the battlefield stood a small blue otter with a light blue midsection, with a darker blue color for his feet and tail. He had a white head with a small brown nose in the middle of it, and two dark blue ears were perched at the top of its head. It confidently hit the small shell on its stomach and smiled.

On Nathan's side was a small green snake looking Pokémon. It had a cream-colored underbelly, but the top of its head, its entire back, and its tail were all green. It had two yellow leaf-like structures that protruded from its shoulder, and its eyes were outlined by a yellow color. It gave a confident smile, it was ready for battle.

Luke gave the first order. "Oshawott, use Tail Whip!"

Oshawott obeyed and waggled its small tail, lowering Snivy's Defense.

"Use Leer, Snivy!" Snivy gave Oshawott a fierce glare, lowering its Defense as well.

Luke responded immediately. "Oshawott, shake it off, use Tackle!"

The small otter Pokémon obeyed, making a mad dash towards the grass snake. When he was about 2 feet away, Nathan gave his order.

"Counter with your own Tackle!" Snivy complied, and began to run towards the blue otter. The two closed in, 1 foot, 10 inches…

Then Luke called out something Nathan should've expected, but for some reason didn't. "Oshawott, dodge it and use Tackle!"

Oshawott then teetered to the side, leaving Snivy to pass it. Snivy tried to slow its momentum, and succeeded in doing so, but was met with Oshawott's Tackle right as it turned around. Snivy closed its eyes and cried out as it stumbled backwards. Luke wouldn't let Snivy recover though, and immediately shot out his next command.

"Use one last Tackle, Oshawott!" The small otter took action, slamming its body into the opponent's one more time. Snivy tumbled backwards, skidding a few inches on its back. It attempted to make a stand, but it was unable. Snivy fell back down, the battle was over.

Nathan sighed and returned Snivy; Luke did the same with Oshawott. Nathan smiled slightly and walked up to Luke and proffered his hand. Luke took the offered hand and shook it.

"Nice battle, Nathan," he complimented.

Nathan flashed another smile. "Thanks, Luke, you did well too."

The two good friends turned around and walked over to Lucy.

"Great battle, guys," she complimented.

Nathan smirked. "Of course, thanks for the compliment. By the way Luke, don't expect me to lose next time."

Luke retaliated with a similar expression. "I'll be ready."

Lucy sighed. "Too bad I couldn't get to battle..." she muttered.

"You'll get your chance to. I would battle you, but Oshawott worked hard to win that battle so he needs to rest," Luke replied.

Lucy nodded. "I know."

"Well guys, let's go to the Pokémon center to stock up, alright?" Nathan suggested.

He received two nods of agreement, so he began walking towards a building with a red roof. Luke chuckled.

"Same old Nathan…" Then he, too, started walking away to catch up with his friend.

Lucy simply gave a shrug. _Eh, why not? I don't need to heal, but I might as well get supplies…_ Lucy then started jogging to catch up with them.

Only a minute or two later, the trio of trainers arrived at a square-ish building with a red roof on the top. You could tell it was a Pokémon Center by the Poke Ball symbol a foot or two above the door. Nathan approached said door and it slid open automatically, and then he walked inside. Lucy and Luke followed the eager trainer inside, and were greeted with a new-and-improved Pokémon Center. At least, it was new by Kanto, Johto, Hoenn, and Sinnoh standards. The Unova region was the only region to update their Pokémon centers, effectively combining the Poke Mart and Center into one building. The three spotted the tile on the floor, shining from the overhead lighting. To their left was a small carpeted area with bookshelves, small potted plants, a wooden table, and four wooden chairs. To the right was a blue 'L' shaped counter that had boxed two men in the corner. They sat in chairs, simply waiting for somebody to ask for something. The small sign above their heads read: "Everything from Poke Balls to Potions, from TM's to HM's can be sold here." And of course, in the back of the Pokémon Center was a red counter with a woman sitting in the chair behind it. She wore a pink dress followed by a white apron, and a white hat with a pink plus on it. She also had blue eyes and pink hair put into two hair loops.

This woman, of course, was none other than Nurse Joy. She finished doing the work on her computer, then turned around to see the three trainers standing there observing every detail of the center.

She cleared her throat. "Hello, and welcome to the Pokémon Center. I can restore your Pokémon to full health, would you like me to?"

Luke, Lucy, and Nathan had their attention brought to Nurse Joy, neither one of them responding for a split second.

Then Lucy finally got her bearings together. "Oh right, sorry about not paying attention for a second. These two just had a battle, so their Pokémon need healing." Lucy nudged the two boys next to her, and they walked up to the counter and handed their Poke Balls to Nurse Joy. Nurse Joy turned around and stepped over to a machine sitting on the wall. The machine has a few blinking lights on the side, an on-off switch, and six rounded divots on the top. Nurse Joy placed the two Poke Balls in a divot and they flashed for a second. After a few seconds, the machine beeped and Nurse Joy picked up the capture devices. She smiled and handed the Poke Balls to the respective trainer.

"Your Pokémon are healthy, have a nice day!"

The three nodded, and Luke and Nathan thanked her. Then the trio turned their attention to the 'L' shaped blue counter, and strode over to it. One of the men beamed at them as he saw their approach.

"Hello, what may I do for you today?" he inquired.

Lucy stepped forward. "Well, we're all new trainers, so we needed to purchase some Poke Balls and Potions. Do you have any in stock?"

The man's expression changed to a quizzical one. "Did you say new trainers?" he asked.

Nathan nodded. "Yeah, we just received our Pokémon from the Professor's assistant about 10 minutes ago, why do you ask?"

The man behind the counter smiled. "Because I'm supposed to give new trainers these…"

The man turned around and bent down. He began to rummage through the cardboard boxes on the floor. He stood up with his arms full of Poke Balls. He set them all down on the counter, along with three bags.

"You each get a bag, ten Poke Balls, and some Potions…" The man turned around again and picked up some Potions. He handed the purple colored bottles to the trainers.

"And you each get three Potions."

Lucy, Luke, and Nathan gratefully picked up a bag, ten Poke Balls, and 3 bottles. While stuffing the Poke Balls and Potions in his bag, Luke spoke up.

"And this is free?" he questioned.

The shopkeeper nodded. "Yes, this stuff is free for new trainers. You have to buy the rest, though."

Nathan shrugged. "That's fair enough."

The salesmen sighed, but smiled soon after. "Well, that's all for now. Good luck on your journey!"

Lucy cracked a half smile. "Thank you."

Then, the three trainers walked out of the Pokémon Center, ready to continue on their journey.

Luke, Nathan, and Lucy stood at the edge of Aspertia City, preparing to traverse the route that led to Flocessy Town. Nathan was explaining something to the other two.

"I've heard there's a Normal-type gym here in Aspertia, but he has at least two Pokémon. So we should train a bit on this route, and then come back, alright?" Lucy and Luke nodded in agreement.

"Alright then, let's go!" Luke said determinedly. So the three trainers then proceeded to walk down the grassy route, ready to begin training. After walking about fifty feet into the route, Lucy stopped and grabbed Luke's shoulder.

"How about that battle?" she challenged, giving him a confident smirk.

Luke shrugged off her hand and walked a few feet away, then threw out his Oshawott smiling. "It's on."

Lucy took a few steps back then threw out her Tepig. In front of the female trainer was a small pig with a mostly orange body. However, the back end and forehead of the fire pig Pokémon were a solid black. Right between Tepig's two eyes was a small patch of yellow, and under it was a red nose. Tepig waggled her small tail with a red ball on the end of it happily and shot a small burst of flames out of her nose. "Tepig!" The pig Pokémon cried out confidently.

Luke gestured to Lucy. "You go first," he instructed.

"Alright, then," Lucy said, "Tepig, use Tail Whip!" Tepig wagged her tail at Oshawott, lowering its Defense. Luke ordered Oshawott to do the same.

Both trainers simultaneously ordered Tackle, so the two starters dashed at each other. The two butted heads, struggling to send the other backwards. It was Oshawott who managed to sweep Tepig off her feet.

Luke pointed at Tepig. "Alright, Oshawott, it's time to finish this!" Oshawott nodded, and awaited an instruction. "Oshawott, use Water Gun!"

This command threw Lucy off. _His Oshawott already knows Water Gun? I bet Nathan's Snivy doesn't even know Vine Whip, let alone my Tepig and Ember… _

"Dodge it, Tepig!" Lucy insisted, and edge of slight worry in her voice.

Tepig tried, it really did, but Oshawott had anticipated the dodge and aimed it slightly off. Tepig accidentally ran into the forceful blast of water, and was pushed all the way to Lucy's feet. However, Tepig still managed to stand up, though she was tired.

"You can do it, Tepig, I know you can," Lucy encouraged. Her Tepig struggled to stand, but finally managed to get on its four legs. Lucy could've sworn she saw her Tepig shine for a brief moment.

Lucy was called back to the battle by Luke's next command.

"Alright, Oshawott, wrap this up with Tackle!"

Lucy frowned slightly, what was she going to do? Then, she had an idea. It was slightly risky, yes, but she was going to attempt it nonetheless.

"Tepig, try and use Ember!" Tepig breathed in then out, succeeding in shooting out flames from its nose. The flames hit Oshawott dead on, causing it to stumble back. However, being not very effective, Oshawott was not deterred too much, and finished the match with Tackle.

Lucy sighed as she gave her Tepig a Potion and returned it to its Poke Ball. Luke walked over to her and held out his hand.

"That was a good battle, Lucy, it really was."

Lucy nodded and shook his offered hand. "Thanks for battling me in the first place. Oh, and for helping my Tepig learn Ember."

Luke shrugged. "No big deal."

It was then the two noticed the absence of Nathan. They had been too caught up in the battle to notice.

"Nathan?" Luke called.

He got his reply, a faint 'Yeah?' from off in the distance. Soon, the duo saw Nathan running towards them. He stopped dead in his tracks right in front of them and began to catch his breath.

"Sorry, guys, I was training. But how'd the battle go?" Nathan inquired.

"Luke won. But hey, what do you say to a battle, Nathan?" Lucy requested.

Nathan grinned confidently. "I don't see why not. Go, Snivy!" After the battle, the three proceeded to train for the rest of the afternoon.


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4**

The training was over when it became 5:00 PM, as the three trainers and Pokémon were getting hungry. Nathan returned his Snivy; Luke and Lucy chose to mirror his actions.

"Well, we should head to the Pokémon Center, our Pokémon worked hard," Luke suggested.

"Yeah, that's a good idea. And the training went well, too. My Snivy learned Wrap," Nathan half-boasted.

However, he couldn't be the only one to brag. Lucy's Tepig had learned Odor Sleuth, and Luke's Oshawott had mastered Water Sport. But, none of the three trainers had caught any Pokémon so far.

The three trainers continued to talk about the day's training, recollecting humorous moments, or recalling the battles they had with each other or wild Pokémon. After a five minute walk, the three trainers reached the Pokémon Center. They walked towards the doors, which slid open automatically, and walked inside the center. The coolness of the inside was refreshing considering they were out in the sun battling all day, and all three instantly felt more relaxed in the cooler environment. As they walked up to counter, Nurse Joy smiled at them and took the Poke Balls from their outstretched hands.

"This may take about 10 minutes longer than usual, so just wait a bit, okay?" Nurse Joy informed them.

The three simply nodded, tired from the almost five hour long training session. Not in a row, of course, they took frequent breaks to heal and refresh their Pokémon, before the small creatures would hop up, ready to go.

After a few minutes of idle chit-chat, Nurse Joy informed them that their Pokémon were ready to go.

Nathan and Luke were glad to have something to do and stood up right away to retrieve their Poke Balls from Nurse Joy, with Lucy in tow. As soon as the two trainers regained possession of their Pokémon, they thanked her and asked for some rooms in the back of the Pokémon Center. Nurse Joy nodded and handed each of the trainers a small golden key, and then told them to have a nice stay.

Each trainer took a key in hand, thanked Nurse Joy, and then walked over to a plain wooden door labeled 'Rental Rooms' in gold lettering. Nathan grasped the bronze doorknob, twisted it, and then opened it. Luke immediately chose the first door they came to, Room One. Nathan got to the room next to Luke's, Room Two, before Lucy did, leaving her to take the room across the hall from Nathan's – Room Three.

Before going their separate ways, Lucy called out from behind her shoulder.

"Good night, guys."

Nathan called back. "Yeah, you have one too."

Luke just smiled at them tiredly and nodded. After that, doors were closed, covers and blankets were moved, Poke Balls were set on the nightstand, and the three eager, novice Trainers fell asleep.

Nathan awoke to a rustling sound, soft steps, and hurried whispers. He grumbled sleepily as he trained his gaze on the digital clock on the nightstand. The novice trainer was astonished, and miffed, to find it was 1:00 in the morning. _Who would be up at this time?_ And so Nathan, doing the thing most sensible people would NEVER do, decided to discover what the noise was all about. He knelt down and rummaged through his bag to find Snivy's Poke Ball, but did not succeed in finding it. Puzzled, Nathan stood up and sighed in frustration. He checked the nightstand, the drawers, and even the closet. In other words, Nathan couldn't find his Snivy.

"Oh this is bad, bad, bad! Where's Snivy?" Nathan exclaimed in shock.

Frustrated and tired from lack of sleep, Nathan grumbled to himself, slipped on his running shoes, and crept into the hallway.

Luke was jarred from his peaceful slumber by a dull slam and a few curses. Groggily, Luke checked the clock, which read 1:02. Despite the fact that he was not usually an early bird and that he loved his sleep, Luke hopped out of bed with a yawn and walked out into the hall barefoot.

"Now, let's see what this is about…" he murmured.

Then a thought came to him. '_Oh wait, I didn't get Oshawott…'_

Luke turned around and crept back into his rented room. The room was dark and shadowy, but the moon shone through the windows providing some light for the amateur trainer. The pale moonlight cast a glow onto the nightstand; Oshawott's Poke Ball should be sitting there. But to Luke's surprise, it was not.

He had one response: "Crap. Well, I hope Nathan knows what to do…"

And with his new goal, Luke exited the room and strode quietly into the hallway.

Luke and Nathan both managed to catch each other in the hallway, as both were heading to the other's room.

Luke sighed sleepily. "I have no clue where Oshawott is; were you able to locate Snivy's Poke Ball?" he questioned?

Nathan just growled. "No, but I wish I could have."

Luke scratched the back of his head. "Then what do you supposed happened? Do you think it was Nurse Joy? It sounds strange, but it's just a thought."

Nathan shrugged. "Luke, I'm tired, I don't want to think at the moment… But, you're guess is probably as good as mine, let's go see the Nurse."

Luke and Nathan were into the main lobby of the Pokémon Center in no time, but could not spot Nurse Joy.

"Great, just what we needed," Nathan muttered sarcastically.

Luke paid no heed to his remark and spoke.

"Hello? Nurse Joy?" he called, hoping for an answer.

His reply was a thumping, light and quick, and it sounded close… Curiously, Luke advanced closer to the Pokémon Center desk. He leaned over the counter and looked down, and there, tied up on the floor was Nurse Joy.

Luke reared his head up and motioned for Nathan to 'get over here'. Nathan helped Nurse Joy into the nearby chair, and Luke undid her binds. Nathan finally removed the cloth that gagged her.

"What happened?" Nathan immediately inquired. Luke shot him a look that read 'Dude, give her a break.'

Nurse Joy took a moment to catch her breath.

"I was checking information on the computer, when I heard the doors open. I instinctively turned to the doorway and greeted the people coming in, as I thought they were trainers. I couldn't have been more wrong…

"These two men rushed in with wearing all black, but there clothing had odd splatters of red paint everywhere. They immediately tied me up, tossed me under the desk, and proceeded to raid the back rooms. I can't stop them, but you can. You're both trainers, you can do something about this!" Nurse Joy explained.

Nathan shook his head. "So we have a couple of robbers, huh? Well, Luke, let's do the best we can. We better get Lucy, too, while we're at it."

Right on cue, a shrill scream was heard from the back; Lucy's.

"That's Lucy!" Luke recognized.

And without needing a plan or any form of defense, the two boys hurried into the back rooms.

On their way there, Nathan spoke up.

"Of course…" the teen mumbled.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Luke inquired.

Nathan chuckled. "Oh, it's nothing. It's just that these guys decided to do one of the most _cliché_ things in the book: go after the 'weak and defenseless' girl."

Luke smirked at that. "And as far as we know, Lucy is anything but." Nathan nodded in agreement, before heading to the back.

Nathan moved stealthily – yet quickly – into the back rooms, and made it to Lucy's room. Luke was right behind him. Nathan put a finger to his lips, telling Luke to be quiet while he opened the door to Lucy's room. Luke nodded, and prepared to move into the room. Nathan twisted the doorknob, opened the door, and they both moved into the room one after another. What they saw surprised them, well, Nathan at least.

On the floor were two grown men wearing all black mumbling or grunting a few words of anger or disappointment. One was slightly taller than the other and had orange hair, the shorter one had brown hair, but it was a bit light. Lucy was standing by the side of them, ready to call to her Tepig for another Tackle if need be. The aforementioned trainer turned her head.

"Hello boys," she greeted simply.

"Hey," was all Luke said.

Lucy sighed and told Tepig to keep watch over the two.

"Can somebody explain who these guys are? They scared me half to death!"

Nathan replied simply; he was not an early bird. "They're just some robbers."

Lucy facepalmed. "I've figured that out by now, Nathan, I was wondering if you any more information. Luke, do you know anything _helpful_?"

Luke shook his head. "I only know as much as Nathan does," he replied.

After a pause, Lucy sighed tiredly. "Well, we'll figure something out."

Nathan yawned and glanced at the clock in the room. It read 1:10.

"I know one thing though, I want sleep…" he mumbled.

Luke rolled his eyes at the thought. "Yes, Nathan, we're just going to leave these criminals here on the floor and let them leave," he retorted sarcastically.

Nathan raised his hands defensively. "I'm just saying that I'm tired."

"Aren't we all?" Lucy replied. She picked up again.

"You two can go get Nurse Joy, I'll stay here and watch these two; Tepig and I've got this!"

Tepig iterated its name and sent a wisp of fire from its nose in agreement.

"Are you sure?" Luke asked.

Nathan grabbed his shoulder. "Let's just go, she's the only one with a Pokémon," he reminded him.

"Fair enough," Luke agreed.

And wordlessly, the two novice Pokémon trainers stepped out of the room and went to go find Nurse Joy.

**I'm sorry, guys, but the chapter stops here. I know this one must've been boring to read, but I needed to lay down some events to make way for the next chapter, where things take a turn for the worse. I'm sorry I have not updated recently, I will update soon though. I hope you have enjoyed the story so far, and don't forget to review. **

**-YinYang9000**


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5**

Luke and Nathan made it to the Pokémon Center counter with no trouble, and located the pink haired woman at the desk: Nurse Joy.

"What did you find?" she questioned the two.

Nathan shrugged nonchalantly. "It was just a random thug. Lucy's got him under control with her Tepig, and we came out here to tell you to call the police while we watch him."

Nurse Joy smiled and nodded. "I'm glad it didn't turn out worse. What could possibly go wrong now?"

Nathan applied the palm of his hand to his face, which is more commonly called a facepalm, and sighed in exasperation. "You're never supposed to say that! It means something WILL go wrong!"

Luke chuckled and rolled his eyes. "Dude, that's just a superstition."

The next thing the trio knew, Lucy's Tepig came running from the back rooms. The orange fire Pokémon was frantically dashing towards them, calling out its name rapidly.

Nathan shot Luke one of those 'I told you so' looks and ran to the back. Luke rolled his eyes and, not bothering to say anything to Nurse Joy, followed the concerned trainer into Lucy's rented room. Upon their arrival, the strange man was nowhere to be found. Luke gazed around the room and spotted a large hole in the window. Below it shards of glass littered the carpet floor. Luke, astonished about what happened, did not focus on anything else as he tried to conjure up in his mind what could have occurred.

The small orange Pokémon that led Nathan and Luke into the room sat in the corner of the room, its nose prodding a strange lump sitting on the floor. Curious as to what the small Pokémon was doing, Nathan strode over to the fire type starter and took a seat on the floor to further examine the aforementioned lump.

***Nathan's POV***

I saw a black lump sitting the floor. I simply sat there, my mind overridden with sleepiness. Finally it registered in my brain that Tepig was concerned about this thing, so I inched forward a bit. I shot a questioning look at Tepig and he hopped up and down, and was now frantically nudging me and then glancing at the object. Quickly I spotted a rope tied around the black object, and I reached for the knot. My clumsy fingers fumbled with the knot and I cursed. _I hate knots…_ I thought. Finally the pesky rope fell to the floor and the knot was untied. Tepig then chomped down on the black cloth and pulled. I realized what he wanted me to do and did the same. What I found startled me greatly.

My hands shook as I witnessed the _person _front of me. How was I so stupid? I should have recognized this sooner, but I didn't. I saw a tear fall from Tepig's eye, and I myself felt like I should cry too. Sure I had only known her for a day or something to that effect, but she was a good friend already. I turned my head towards Tepig.

"Tepig, go get Nurse Joy and get her to call 911, alright?" I requested.

The fire pig nodded solemnly and scampered out of the room to locate the pink haired nurse.

***Luke's POV***

I was snapped out of my musings by a very concerned Nathan. His voice sounded very shaky, and alarms went off in my head immediately. Something was wrong, it had to be. I turned around to face him, and I could've sworn I saw a tear slip from his eye. _Focus, dang it! _I reprimanded myself. Nathan motioned me over to him, and I complied. What I saw I couldn't believe. I didn't want to either.

"Holy crap… What happened to her?"

It was Lucy. Her head had a large gash near the forehead, a large bruise on her cheek, and her face looked extremely pale. Red liquid stained the carpet. My stomach churned, this couldn't be good.

I muttered some more in disbelief before Nurse Joy ran in the room with Lucy's Tepig in her arms. She dropped the fire pig to the ground, earning a squeal of protest.

"W-What happened?" Nurse Joy stuttered.

In front of me Nathan stood up, his expression downcast as he spoke.

"I wish I knew."

***Normal POV***

Nurse Joy shakily informed Nathan and Luke that she was going to go call the police then left the room, leaving Nathan, Luke, Tepig, and Lucy. Tepig, being the loyal Pokémon he was, sat by Lucy and refused to budge. Nathan sat solemnly next to Lucy as well, his gaze turned to the ground. Luke glanced at his longtime friend and knew immediately something was wrong. Of course, Lucy had been assaulted, but it was something else that was wrong.

"You okay, man?" Luke questioned.

Nathan shook his head. "I'm worried about her, Luke."

Luke nodded. "I am too."

After a long pause and a minute or two of debate, Luke spoke up again.

"You like her, don't you?" Luke asked with hesitation.

Nathan's breath hitched and then chuckled. "Did I really make it that obvious?"

"Noooo, I'm just really good at guessing," he shot back with sarcasm.

Nathan retaliated with a smirk. "Okay, you got me, I do. I'm concerned for her right now…"

After that, it was silent for the longest time until the nurse came back.

"Guys I called the police and they'll be here in-"

Nurse Joy was cut off mid-sentence by a large BOOM from nearby. The building shuddered and the three humans were caught off-guard. Nathan and Luke rose to their feet, both of them picking up Lucy's limp body, and hobbled out of the door with Tepig and Nurse Joy in tow. Upon arriving outside, their hearts skipped a beat. There was fire and rubble everywhere. The acrid smoke stung their eyes and many screams were heard throughout the city. Motorcycles and sirens were heard resounding from out in the city as well.

The trio was speechless at the event that was occurring right in front of them. A few seconds later, a motorcycle and ambulance pulled up in front of them. A blue haired woman stepped off the bike and walked up to them

"I'm Officer Jenny. It seems an evil organization set off a few bombs throughout the town and we're trying to locate them. Have you seen anyone?"

Nurse Joy nodded. "Yes, we have a girl right here who was attacked by a man in all black. Is that him and can you help her?"

A flash of recognition flashed across her face. "Yes, that's the uniform! Thank you so much."

Jenny turned around and shouted to the ambulance driver to get Lucy. The driver and another uniformed man came out of the ambulance with a stretcher. Lucy was placed on it and hauled into the ambulance before she was driven away.

"She'll be fine. Now back to the matter at hand. We have an agent tracking the organization as we speak. Would you two like to help us track them down and subdue them?" asked the officer.

Luke and Nathan exchanged glances. "Yes," they replied in unison.

"There's just one problem: Nathan and I don't have our Pokémon as they were stolen…"

Jenny nodded. "We can easily retrieve them. Alright, you'll have to keep up with me when infiltrating the building they're hiding in, but I'm sure you can handle it. Let's go."

With those last words, Luke and Nathan wordlessly got in the side cars of the motorcycle, and Jenny drove off down the street. They wouldn't let Officer Jenny down. And if they did let everyone down, they would not only let the blue haired woman down, but themselves, Lucy, and every one of Aspertia City's citizens.

**A/N:**

**Well, I finally updated. :) How'd you all like the new chapter? Tell me how you did in a review if you would like to. Now here are some questions that you can take liberties to answer or not:**

**What do you think of the whole bombing situation right now?**

**Do you think these people will pose a threat later on?**

**Lastly, what do you think of the short exchange between Luke and Nathan? :P (Had to put that in there).**


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter 6**

Luke, Nathan, and Lucy sat at the Pokémon Center's table and let out a sigh. Last night's events left them tired and with some resentment.

"I still can't believe I got out of the hospital so quickly," Lucy said happily.

Luke could tell she was trying to spark a conversation, but he just wasn't up for it right then. Nathan picked it up, however, and continued to chat with the blond girl. Luke's thoughts wandered everywhere, but eventually – and inevitable – his cogitations roamed to last night.

In Officer Jenny's side car, Luke and Nathan raced towards the burning building at the corner of the town. What they saw filled them with fear and anger towards the people responsible. Officer Jenny was already off the motorcycle.

"Come on, you two, let's go."

Nathan and Luke nodded solemnly and stepped onto the street. All three approached the burning building with haste, and Jenny strode up to another man in a uniform.

"Ah, Officer Jenny, you're back!" the man exclaimed.

"What's the status on the building?" Jenny asked, seeming to brush off the man's remark.

"Well the building is clearly on fire and about five people were injured, two dead, and also three injured Pokémon. The bombers escaped on police motorcycles and we were unable to catch them. They're already long gone."

Jenny growled. "No good little…" Jenny cursed and ran a hand through her hair.

"Oh well, the best thing we can do is put out the fire and see if we can nail these guys later. See to it that that stuff gets done. You got it, Jenkins?"

The other policeman nodded quickly. "Yes ma'am, right away."

After that Luke and Nathan returned to the Pokémon Center for the night, and discovered Lucy was back in the morning.

Luke was snapped out of his thoughts by a hand waving in front of his face.

"Hey, Luke, are you there? Hello?"

Luke shook his head to focus and saw Lucy waving her hand in front of his face.

"Oh, I'm sorry guys. I was thinking about last night," Luke replied.

Nathan looked slightly concerned, but sympathetic. "Look, man, there was nothing we could've done about it."

Luke shrugged, "I guess so."

Lucy placed her hands on the table and stood up. "I have an idea," she said with a smile.

Nathan glanced up at her. "And that would be?"

Lucy gave a short dramatic pause before replying. "Well how about our first gym battle?"

Luke and Nathan grinned. "Definitely," they replied in unison.

The Aspertia gym wasn't too far away from the Pokémon Center, and the trio reached the gym in less than ten minutes of walking.

Nathan threw up his arms theatrically over his head and spoke. "Here it is, the Aspertia Gym!"

Luke rolled his eyes at his best friend's antics, but smiled in spite of it.

"Well come on, let's go in shall we?" Luke quipped.

The three made their way into the gym, and were met by a plain battlefield where the lines were made with chalk. At one side was a man, most likely the gym leader. He was very tall, but did not have an intimidating presence. He wore khaki slacks, a white and pink pinstriped shirt and a pink tie with brown loafers. He had short, blonde hair combed to the side and gelled to look neat, blue eyes, fairly pale skin, and a pair of large, rectangular glasses. He looked over to the three.

"Challengers?" he asked simply.

Luke nodded, "Yep, my name's Luke and I'm here to win."

"That goes double for me," Nathan countered.

The gym leader smiled as he saw the trainer's enthusiasm. "Well my name is Trace Johnson and I am Aspertia City's gym leader. I use normal types and I use the triple battle for my gym matches. Think you're ready for this?"

"You bet I am!" Nathan exclaimed. It was blatantly obvious he was getting excited about the impending match.

"Well you're gonna need 3 Pokémon since this is a triple battle," Trace informed the eager trainer.

That silenced Nathan immediately. "Aw crap…" he mumbled.

"Let me guess, you only have one Pokémon?" Trace assumed.

"Yeah…" Nathan replied.

"Well, if all three of you have one Pokémon then you can battle me," Trace suggested.

Luke perked up at the suggestion. "Well that's perfect then, let's do this!"

Wordlessly Trace sent out an Audino, a Rattata, and a Lillipup. Lucy, Luke, and Nathan responded by sending out their respective starters.

"Let the match begin!" Trace shouted.

"Alright, Luke and Nathan, we need to work as a team, got it?"

The two boys nodded.

"Good," Lucy said.

"Alright, Audino, you use Helping Hand! Rattata and Lillipup Tail Whip or Growl!" Trace commanded.

Audino clapped her hands together and glowed green, which in turn made Rattata and Lillipup glow. Lillipup barked at the foes, and Rattata swung its tail.

The three friends, however, were not fazed.

"Tepig, use Tail Whip on them all!" Lucy shouted.

"You should too, Snivy!" Nathan added on.

"And Oshawott you use that Water Sport tactic we've been working on!" Luke called to his otter Pokémon.

Oshawott unleashed a small burst of water towards the three normal types. Lucy stared at Luke like he was crazy.

"What are you doing? That move doesn't do damage! In fact, it weakens Tepig's Ember!" Lucy cried.

Luke smirked. "Just watch."

The water from Oshawott's Water Sport sailed through the air and landed right in the 3 opposing Pokémon's eyes! The three Normal types were temporarily blinded by the sudden water burst and stumbled back.

"Perfect! Oshawott, use Water Gun on Audino!" Luke ordered.

From its mouth Oshawott unleashed a strong stream of water and it hit Audino square in the face. Lucy and Nathan took this opportunity to have Snivy and Tepig tackle Rattata and Lillipup. Audino, Lillipup, and Rattata took some damage, but recovered quickly and without the water in their eyes.

"Rattata, use Tackle on Snivy!" Trace said after short pause.

"Tepig, intercept with your own Tackle!" Lucy shouted.

Tepig sprinted toward Rattata ready to ram it, but was met with a slap across the face from Audino. Audino gave Tepig two more slaps before using a final one to make it hit the wall of the gym. Tepig slammed against the wall and slid to the ground, letting out a weak cry. It barely managed to stand up, but it did. Soon after Rattata dove at Snivy with a Tackle ready, but Nathan was ready.

"Intercept with Vine Whip, Snivy!"

The grass snake released two slender vines from its body and wrapped them around the purple rat.

"Perfect! Rattata use Bite on Snivy's vines!"

Rattata's fangs glowed white as it chomped down on Snivy's vines. Snivy let out a cry of pain and withdrew them, and was promptly tackled by Rattata. Snivy tumbled across the floor and over to where Tepig lay. It was not as badly damaged as Tepig, but it too looked fatigued. Seconds later, Luke's starter Pokémon was sent flying over to where Snivy and Tepig were by a fierce Tackle from Lillipup.

"Darn, they have good teamwork…" Luke muttered.

"Yeah, so we need to step up ours." Lucy countered.

"Audino, Rattata, Lillipup, let's go in for the kill. You all know what to do!" Trace urged.

Audino ran up with its hands glowing white, and Lillipup and Rattata were going in for a Tackle. The three starters, though fatigued, managed to jump out of the way.

"Keep it up, you three," Trace encouraged.

Tackle after Tackle, Double Slap after Double Slap the three weary starters kept dodging until Lucy's Tepig collapsed onto the ground from fatigue. Rattata raced by and finished it with a Tackle. Sighing, Lucy withdrew here defeated fire pig.

"You've got to win guys, you've got this!" Lucy cried.

Luke and Nathan were on the edge now. With their two weary partners against 3 not as damaged foes, could they claim their first gym badge?

**How was it? Good? I apologize for not updating for a really long time, but I'm back. :D So now I have some questions for you and information on the level of Luke's Pokémon.**

**Do you think Nathan and Luke can pull of their first gym win?**

**Who is your favorite character so far? (Luke/Lucy/Nathan)**

**Levels:**

**Luke –**

**Oshawott Lvl 10**


	7. Chapter 7

**Chapter 7**

Luke clenched his hands into fists in reply to the battle situation he and Nathan were in: 3 Pokémon for Trace and 2 for him and Nathan.

"Luke," Nathan whispered to his comrade, "We need to target one Pokémon then go after the rest."

Luke nodded and smiled. Nathan too smiled and the two friends turned back to the battlefield. Snivy and Oshawott shuffled back and forth, anxiously awaiting their trainer's orders. Trace's Pokémon, too, were awaiting orders.

"Oshawott, use Water Gun and move side to side!"

The small bipedal otter released the stream of water and ran from side to side, causing the water to crash into all three of Trace's Pokémon.

"Snivy, follow it up with Tackle on Rattata!"

Snivy leaped high into the air and set its sights on the purple rat below. Rattata was unable to move because Water Gun had pushed it into the wall. Snivy nailed Rattata and the rat fainted with swirls for eyes. Trace called back his Pokémon.

"It's even I see," Trace commented. Luke and Nathan remained quiet, and instead focused on the battle.

"Snivy use Wrap on Lillipup!" Nathan shouted. The grass snake dashed towards the puppy feet away. Lillipup barked and dashed after Snivy at Snivy with its fangs glowing.

"Oshawott, attack Audino before it can intercept!" Oshawott again let out a blast of water at the bipedal pink Pokémon, unaware of the plan Trace had. Trace waited before calling out to his Pokémon.

"Audino, break through with Double Slap then go for a Pound!" Audino rushed forward and slapped its way through the Water Gun then leapt towards the sea otter with its hand glowing white.

"Oshawott dodge!" In its panic though, Oshawott tripped over its two feet and was smacked hard across the face by Audino. Oshawott rolled backwards and slid across the floor, shakily managing to stand up after the attack. Seconds later Lillipup's Bite overpowered Snivy and the green was tackled away and into the wall. Now Oshawott and Snivy were cornered by Trace's Lillipup and Audino, and with little strength left to use.

"Audino, Lillipup, finish it with the Leap Frog combo!" Audino gave its teammate a boost and charged after the starters with a Pound. Lillipup, with the boost from its ally, came down from the air with a Tackle.

"Make a water shield, Oshawott!" With Water Gun, Oshawott hastily set up a shield of water to cover it and Snivy. The water slowed down Audino and Lillipup's momentum, and they didn't come at the two starters as fast. Snivy and Oshawott knew instinctively what to do next and both tackled Audino and Lillipup respectively. Trace's two remaining Pokémon were sent backwards. Lillipup managed to land on its feet, Audino was not so lucky however and fell over with swirls for eyes. Despite being outmatched, Lillipup seemed to look fiercer now that before. Oshawott and Snivy cheered.

"Lillipup, use Growl." Lillipup growled at the two and their attack was immediately lowered. It seemed Trace was running out of ideas and strategies.

"Go tackle it, Oshawott." Oshawott nodded and made a beeline for the weakened pup. Lillipup immediately dodged.

"Do it now, Snivy," Nathan ordered. Snivy released vines from its back and wrapped them around Lillipup. The dog was lifted up high then tossed to the ground almost immediately.

"Finish it, Oshawott." Oshawott dove at the grounded dog and left Lillipup with swirls for eyes. Trace sighed, the battle was over.

"It was a nice battle. Good job, you three, you know how to work well as a team. So it is with great pleasure I give you all the Standard Badge." The tall man smiled and gave all three of them a metal square badge that was white in color and had grey lines running through it. Luke, Lucy, and Nathan smiled.

"Thank you, Trace," they all said in unison.

He smiled, "No problem. Good luck on the rest of your journey, you three."

"Will do, see ya, Trace," Nathan responded.

***LATER THAT DAY***

Luke smiled as he examined the badge. "Only sixteen badges to go…" he muttered. Nathan came up and sat down next to him, and Lucy wasn't far behind.

"We got our first badge finally. That battle was close," Lucy commented. Nathan nodded. A sudden silence fell over the three. Luke knew it was time.

"It was a nice battle, and it would be cool if all battles turned out as a win for all of us. But of course, when you have me as a rival, what are you gonna do?" Nathan said jokingly.

Lucy rolled her eyes. "Just watch me leave you two in the dust," she countered with a sly smile.

Luke shook his head. "Well, tomorrow we go our separate ways. We'll probably encounter each other for a battle soon enough though."

"Yep, but don't expect to win so easily next time, Luke," Nathan warned him.

"I know."

The three later on went to go eat lunch, have some practice battles, and then go sate their appetites again with dinner. Lucy decided she was going to rent out another room in the Pokémon Center, but Luke and Nathan both bought tents and slept on the route to the next town or city to get used to what they would have to do. In the morning Luke discovered Nathan had already gone ahead. He stood up, stretched, and put away the foldable tent in his bag.

"I won't let you get that far ahead, Nathan!" Luke said. And with that, he jogged down the route and on to Flocessy Town.

***LATER THAT DAY***

Luke was walking along the route to Flocessy Town. The sun was out and it was nice and warm. After doing some training with Oshawott, he had decided to sit down on a nearby rock and take a short 5 minute break. He pulled out a purple bottle and sprayed its contents onto his water starter. Oshawott perked up after being healed an immediately dug into his Pokémon food. Luke smiled and rubbed the back of Oshawott's head. A few minutes later, he saw another boy walk by. He was thin and fairly average in height with tan skin, black hair, and brown eyes. _What do you know? This is the first trainer I've encountered on this route. This should be good. _Luke thought.

"Hey!" Luke called out. The boy stopped and turned to look at Luke. "Will you battle me?" Luke asked him.

The boy nodded. "Sure I will. The name's Tyson."

Luke grinned; this was going to be his first battle against a trainer he had never met before, not counting the gym leader of course. "My name's Luke."

"Alright, Luke, if you don't mind can this be a short 1-on-1 battle?" Tyson proposed.

"Sure."

"Okay then, go, Charmander!" Tyson threw out a Poke Ball and out came a bipedal orange lizard with a flame on the tip of its tail.

"You're up, Oshawott!" Luke said. Oshawott stepped forward and eyed his powerful looking opponent. "The first move is yours," Luke told Tyson.

"Alright, Charmander use Smokescreen!" From its mouth Charmander unleashed a thick black haze in the area. Oshawott panicked – it couldn't see. From the darkness Oshawott could see a small light, probably Charmander's tail, and ran towards it. When Oshawott finally reached it, he discovered it was only a small Ember. It was then he realized the mistake. He felt Charmander's claws rake his face and he went stumbling backwards.

"Oshawott, spin and use Water Gun to clear the smoke," Luke instructed hastily. Oshawott performed the command just as quickly as Luke said it, and spun around and around until the smoke cleared. When the smoke was gone, he discovered Charmander had been doused as well.

"Charmander use Scratch!" Charmander dashed after Oshawott, who was slightly dizzy from spinning around, and slashed him across the face. Oshawott violently shook his head and regained his bearings.

"Go for a Tackle, Oshawott," Luke instructed. "Retaliate with Scratch!" Tyson countered. The two moves collided, and in the beginning the two seemed even until Charmander swept Oshawott off its feet using its tail.

"Now point blank Ember!" From its mouth Charmander spewed hot embers right at Oshawott's face. The water type jumped up and ran around while attempting to put out its burning face. Luke sighed.

"Put it out with Water Gun, Oshawott." The otter paused as if to say 'I knew that' and sprayed water on itself. Oshawott smiled and hopped up and down. "Oshawott, focus and use Tackle!" Luke shouted. Oshawott stopped hopping and rushed at Charmander, a look of sheer determination in his eyes.

"Spin and use Ember!" Tyson instructed. Copying Oshawott's earlier movement, Charmander spun around and around until he created a wall of fire encompassing him. Oshawott stopped, back peddled hastily, and awaited Luke's orders.

"Shoot a Water Gun over that wall!" The bipedal blue otter shot up water over the fire wall (not to be confused with firewall), and it was more effective than Luke had hoped for. In protection of its tail flame, Charmander leaped out of the way and stopped the wall. It was left open, so Oshawott went ahead and tackled it. Charmander was nailed right in the stomach and was sent backwards, but still on its feet. It seemed to two were even now damage wise.

"Wrap this up with a full power Water Gun/Ember!" the two trainers called in unison. The two opposites clashed, neither giving an inch. In the end the two were cancelled out and smoke covered the field. "Crap, not again…" Luke muttered. Having 'lost' its sight again Oshawott panicked.

"Finish it with Scratch," Tyson ordered. Oshawott felt Charmander's claws once again rake him across the face and he stumbled backwards, this time with swirls for eyes. The smoke cleared when the battle was over, the winner was Tyson. Luke returned his fainted Pokémon and looked over to his opponent.

"Wow, that Charmander of yours is pretty good. That was a good battle," Luke praised. Tyson went over and shook Luke's hand.

"It was. We should battle again sometime, okay?" Tyson quipped.

"Definitely," Luke responded.

The sun was beginning to set, so Tyson went on ahead and told Luke he would see him later. Luke told him winning wouldn't be so easy next time. And as Luke set up his tent that night, he couldn't wait to find more trainers and more Pokémon for him to meet. He grinned at the thought of it. _Unova, here I come._


	8. Chapter 8

**Chapter 8**

Luke woke up early the next morning, 6:30 to be exact, and hurriedly got dressed and put away the tent. He released Oshawott and the otter Pokémon yawned. Luke smiled.

"Look, I know you're tired. But today we're going to find you and me a new partner!" Luke informed the bipedal blue Pokémon.

Oshawott smiled and bopped the shell on its stomach as if to say 'Let's do it!' then tapped the white button on the Poke Ball to return itself. Luke attached the Poke Ball to his belt, put on his backpack, ate an apple from his bag, and then headed over to Flocessy Town in hopes of making it there before 7 o' clock.

***Later at 7 O' Clock***

Luke thanked Nurse Joy as he received Oshawott's Poke Ball. He sat down at a nearby table in the corner and sat Oshawott on the table. "Are you ready to find a new partner?" he asked the otter.

Oshawott smiled and iterated its name. Luke smiled. "Then let's go and find one," he said. Luke returned Oshawott and stood up. He walked out of the Pokémon Center and began walking to the nearest place where he felt he could find some new and powerful Pokémon: Flocessy Ranch.

A few minutes later Luke found himself standing in front of the gate that led to the ranch. By the gate was a middle aged man, about 41 perhaps, who was sitting on a wooden stool. He glanced at Luke.

"You going to the ranch?" he inquired. Luke nodded. "Well good luck then, they say there's a powerful Pokémon that's not supposed to be found in this area. If you're looking for a new Pokémon or something, I wouldn't recommend trying to catch it."

Now Luke was interested. "Really, there's a powerful Pokémon in the ranch? What Pokémon is it?" The middle aged man shrugged and hopped off the stool. "I don't know what it is, but I'm sure you'll recognize it when you see it." After he finished talking the man picked up the stool and began to walk towards his house. Luke gratefully thanked the man and then entered the ranch. He also let out Oshawott just in case he encountered the Pokémon he was looking for. When he stepped inside he saw a man and a woman, who both looked to be around thirty-five, that were both sitting in chairs. The woman had her head in her hands and the man was comforting her. Puzzled, Luke walked over to them.

"Is there something wrong?" Luke asked the two. The man and woman looked up at him and nodded.

"Our Herdier ran off chasing something an hour ago and haven't come back. My husband tried looking for them but couldn't find them…" the woman explained.

"I could try and find them for you," Luke offered. The man looked up.

"Would you really?" he questioned. Luke smiled. "Yeah, I wouldn't mind at all. Plus I'm looking for a new Pokémon anyway," he informed them.

The two thanked Luke. "Good luck," they told him. With that new information in mind, Luke walked off and towards the more woodsy part of the ranch in hopes of locating the Herdier and a new Pokémon partner. As he walked along with Oshawott by his side Luke noticed a bipedal blue dog dash by into the bushes. Luke scanned it with his Pokedex – a Riolu just like he thought. He didn't bother to catch it, Riolu were rare sure, but he wanted something even rarer in this area. Whatever that rare thing was, Luke didn't know. A few minutes later Luke saw out of the corner of his eye a flock of Mareep. He didn't bother going after them either because they were ranch Pokémon.

Fifteen more minutes passed, and Luke and Oshawott were getting slightly agitated. Where was that Pokémon? However, their patience was rewarded soon enough. Not far away Luke heard squawking and frantic cries from the Mareep. _You're not supposed to be able to find bird Pokémon in this area… This must be it!_ Luke thought excitedly. He glanced at Oshawott. "Ready, Oshawott?" Oshawott replied back enthusiastically. "Then let's go."

The flock of Mareep Luke located was running around with frantic cries as a small bird Pokémon attacked some of them. It resembled a small blue eaglet with some white down feathers around its head. It had a prominent red feather sticking up from its head and was chasing after the Mareep with its yellow beak and yellow talon-equipped feet. When Luke scanned it with the Pokedex, the Pokémon registered as a Rufflet. "Oshawott, aim your Water Gun near that Rufflet just to get its attention, alright?" Luke asked his starter. Oshawott nodded and released a steady stream of water from its mouth in Rufflet's general direction. The eaglet squawked and flew out of the way before the water attack nailed it. It chirped angrily at Luke with one of those 'Leave me alone' expressions.

"Rufflet, you're going to be my Pokémon! I can already tell this is going to be so worth it," Luke smirked. Luke then directed Oshawott to fire another Water Gun at Rufflet. The Eaglet Pokémon once again dodged the incoming attack but got its wing clipped this time. Rufflet spiraled and hit the ground. It was dazed but managed to get back to its feet with ease.

"Tackle it, Oshawott!" Luke shouted. Oshawott dashed at the grounded bird, but Rufflet was not one to back down and rushed at Oshawott with a glowing beak – a Peck attack. The two attacks met, but Rufflet overpowered Oshawott almost easily. The otter was sent flying.

"Hang in there, Oshawott, and try for a Water Sport," Luke instructed. Oshawott, not one to let down its trainer, shot a burst of water into the air that rained down some water drops. In a panic Rufflet weaved in and out of the water in fear of getting its feathers wet. "Perfect, now tackle it!" Oshawott leaped up and smashed into Rufflet's stomach, spiking it to the ground. "Now use it again!" Luke was hoping to finish it quickly. But with a fiery determination, Rufflet stood back up and batted Oshawott away with a powerful Wing Attack! Oshawott was knocked over and ended up at his trainer's feet. The bipedal otter struggled to get up.

Rufflet let out a triumphant squawk and went in for the final move, another Peck. With the aid of its wings Rufflet made a high jump and was about to finish off Oshawott with Peck's impact when Luke had an epiphany.

"Block it with your shell!" he shouted. Oshawott hurriedly raised the shell on his stomach and managed to block Rufflet's Peck. "Now finish it with your best Water Gun!"

Oshawott fired his Water Gun at point blank and Rufflet was knocked backwards onto its back. Oshawott stood up just in case Rufflet did again. And in fact, Rufflet refused to give up. With great difficulty it managed to stand up. And even then the eaglet was very shaky. Oshawott was preparing another Water Gun until Luke stopped him. Puzzled the otter turned around and gave Luke a questioning look.

"Rufflet's too tired, Oshawott. Even if he does continue fighting it won't do him any good. So now it's time to capture him, what do you say?" Luke replied. Oshawott seemed to think for a moment and then nodded slowly. Walking over to the weary Eaglet Pokémon Luke removed a spare Poke Ball from his belt and tapped it on Rufflet's head. The stubborn wild Pokémon offered little resistance as it was sucked inside the Poke Ball. Luke smiled.

"I caught my first Pokémon, yeah!" Luke cried happily. Oshawott said some random things in his Pokémon language. Whatever he said, it sounded just as happy as what Luke said. "Thank you, Oshawott. Because of you we have a new addition to the team. Take a well-deserved rest." Luke returned the tired water Pokémon and then let out his newly caught Pokémon. He kneeled to diligently spray a potion on Rufflet and immediately the eaglet looked happy and healthy again.

"Rufflet, I can already tell you're going to be a great addition to the team. But we have to train hard if we hope to do well, are you up for it?" Luke asked. Rufflet tilted its head to the side before chirping happily and hopping twice.

Luke grinned. "Great. Then let's go win that gym badge!" Luke returned his new catch and stood up. He realized he wasn't ready to get the badge, not yet. He still needed to find the two Herdiers. Luke sighed, he was guessing this was going to be a long day.


	9. Chapter 9

**Chapter 9**

Luke's stomach grumbled after searching for 20 minutes. He sat down on a nearby rock and released Rufflet and Oshawott. He gave them both some berries to snack on then pulled out another apple for himself. As he snacked on an apple he wondered if he would ever find the Herdier. Just as Luke chucked the apple core onto the ground, he heard some loud barking off in the distance. _That must be the Herdier! But what's the barking about? _Luke returned Oshawott immediately but motioned for Rufflet to follow him.

Luke walked through the thick mess of trees, playing by ear in hopes of locating the distressed sounding Herdier. At last, with Rufflet hopping by his side, Luke came to a dead end clearing somewhere in the ranch. Luke gasped as he saw the uniform. It was same black background; the same random splatters that were never the same on any uniform. It was the same grunt from the terrorist organization he met in Aspertia City. In the corner of the clearing Luke eyed the two tied up and now muzzled Herdier. The grunt spat at the ground in Luke's general area. Luke's eyes narrowed in anger. How could he do this to Pokémon? The grunt laughed at Luke and pulled out a pistol. He aimed the weapon at the Herdier.

"Look, kid, either you leave now and I don't kill you, or you stay and get killed. It's your choice. I'll shoot the dumb mutts here too."

Luke's muscles tensed and his heart raced. _He's going to… Shoot the Herdier? What would possess anyone to do that? I have to be careful here…_

Luke sighed and backed away, raising his hands in defeat. "Fine, I'll leave. Just don't hurt me," Luke begged.

The grunt rolled his eyes. "That's what I told ya to do, idiot. You retarded or something?" He pointed the pistol at Luke and jerked his head towards the ranch's exit. "Scram."

Luke was seething with anger and clenched his fist. _Don't insult me; I could beat you any day. And don't think you'll get away with killing the Herdier, either._

"Rufflet, do it now!" Luke dictated. With a squawk Luke's freshly caught Pokémon seemingly flew out of nowhere and bombarded the man with many Pecks. Rufflet scratched the man's hand with his talon. The man cursed and brought his good hand to his injured one; dropping the gun on the ground and leaving Rufflet to scoop it up and fly back to Luke.

"Good job, Rufflet, thank you," Luke complimented. The eaglet Pokémon chirped happily. The grunt snarled at Luke. "I hate ya already, kid, messing with me like this. You'll regret it for sure. Go, Alakazam!"

A bipedal yellow Pokémon appeared in front of Luke that held a spoon in its hand and appeared to have a mustache of sorts. Luke was confused, if he wanted to kill Pokémon why have one?

"Use Psychic on the boy and his bird or else I'll kill you like the rest," the man barked. The Alakazam half-heartedly trapped Luke and Rufflet in the air with a Psychic attack. Luke's eyes widened. _They don't give a crap about Pokémon, they just use them as slaves then kill them if they rebel or aren't useful! That's so horrible…_

"Now grab my gun," the man barked again. Alakazam walked over and snatched the pistol out of Rufflet's talons, then handed it to the grunt. The grunt showed a toothy grin and returned Alakazam. Luke and Rufflet crashed to the ground and let out a small cry of pain. The grunt aimed his gun at the Herdier. He cocked the gun, and fired at the Herdier. All Luke saw was the man's bloodlust in his eyes and the look of fear in the Herdier's. The dog Pokémon never had a chance. The man smirked as he prepared to ready the gun again, only to discover he had no more ammo. The man cursed once again as he pocketed the gun and then sent out Alakazam.

"Back to the base," he commanded briskly. The Alakazam had no choice but to obey and the duo disappeared in a flash of light. Shakily, Luke stood up and returned Rufflet. Slowly he walked over the dead Herdier. _**Dead.**_ The other Herdier was howling in anguish at its deceased friend and wouldn't stop. Minutes later the farmer man and his wife from earlier came and discovered the two Herdier and Luke, gasping at what they witnessed. They were asking him many questions. What happened? Who did this? Did **you **do this? But Luke didn't pay them any attention. He shakily got down on his knees and glanced at the Herdier, a lone tear falling from his eyes. He had never seen anything more gruesome in his life.

***The next day. Morning time***

Luke sat at the Pokémon Center table drinking some water. Today was the day. He was going to take on the gym in Flocessy Town, which he heard was a Ghost-type gym. Oshawott and Rufflet were sitting in the chairs next to him.

"Are you guys ready for this? We're going to challenge the gym!" He received a cheerful chirp and a smile from his Pokémon respectively. "Well then, let's go!"

Luke stood up, returned his Pokémon, tossed his cup in the trash, and then left the Pokémon center. He had trained early in the morning, and he felt he was prepared for the ensuing battle. Snagging a town map from the Pokémon Center, Luke easily located the gym and arrived there in a matter of minutes. Anticipation hit Luke like a wave; he was ready for the battle. He opened the door and stepped inside. Inside the gym was rather small and not well lit. _Fit for Ghost Pokémon, I guess._

"Is anyone here?" Luke called out. He heard no reply. He tried again, and 2 more times. Finally, a man walked out of a back room. He looked very tired and disheveled, like he had stayed up working all night. But in the dark room Luke couldn't tell what he looked like exactly. The man yawned.

"Are you the gym leader?" Luke inquired.

"Yes. I'm Flocessy's gym leader Reagan." The man replied. "Since you're here to challenge me I'll say the rules: The match will be a single battle using only 2 Pokémon, alright?" he added.

Luke nodded and sent out Rufflet. "You got this, Rufflet!" Luke encouraged his Pokémon.

Reagan tossed his Poke Ball onto the battlefield as well, and a small, bluish puppet-like Pokémon appeared. Luke's Pokedex informed him it was a Pokémon known as Shuppet. Luke swallowed, the battle was underway.

"Shuppet start off with Will-O-Wisp!" A ring of small blue flames appeared around Shuppet's body and shot at Rufflet. The eaglet instinctively dodged.

"Retaliate with Wing Attack!" Luke countered. Rufflet ran at the puppet Pokémon with glowing wings and slapped it across the face. Shuppet was sent floating back a few feet.

"Shuppet, use Shadow Sneak up to Rufflet and use Knock Off!" Shuppet smiled malevolently and sank into the shadows of the ground. Rufflet looked around in panic. Shuppet appeared right in front of Rufflet and gave the eaglet Pokémon and rammed into it. Rufflet skidded away, but retaliated with Peck. Shuppet blocked it with Knock Off.

"Now a close range Will-O-Wisp!" Reagan shouted. Again the blue flames shot at Rufflet – scoring a direct hit this time – and burned the flying Pokémon. Luke frowned.

"Rufflet, use Hone Claws." Luke suggested. Rufflet sharpened his claws immediately, raising his attack power and accuracy. "Now go for a Wing Attack!"

Rufflet charged again at his floating opponent, but was blocked by Knock Off again. "Perfect! Use Peck, Rufflet!" Luke called. With a glowing beak Rufflet struck Shuppet in the face. The ghost was knocked back to the feet of its trainer. Reagan frowned.

"Shuppet, use Curse." Reagan instructed. Shuppet's eyes glowed an eerie white and then flashed purple. Rufflet flashed purple, too. Then abruptly the puppet fainted. Rufflet, happy that Shuppet was eliminated, hopped up happily. The joy was short-lived, however, as Rufflet took burn damage and then flashed purple again. Luke, concerned, checked his Pokedex. Rufflet was not doing so well, the digital bar showed Rufflet's HP in the red. Luke sighed.

"Rufflet, return." Rufflet was returned to his Poke Ball in a flash of red light and was replaced by the otter Pokémon Oshawott. Oshawott seemed to smirk with confidence. Oshawott and his trainer focused their eyes on Reagan's next move. The tired gym leader removed another Poke Ball from his belt, enlarged it, and then chucked it onto the battlefield. Out of the Poke Ball appeared a floating purple ball surrounded by purple gases. The Pokedex informed Luke it was a Gastly.

Reagan wasn't going to give Luke any down time, though. "Gastly, use Hypnosis!" Luke reacted instantly and ordered Oshawott to dodge the yellow rings advancing towards him. The otter performed the command flawlessly.

"Counter with the Water Sport tactic!" The bipedal otter released a burst of water at the Gas Pokémon, successfully blinding it temporarily. Then, Oshawott fired a Water Gun at it. The stream of water nailed the Gastly, pushing it back a few feet. Gastly shook the attack like it was nothing, though, and fired off another round of yellow rings. Oshawott managed to dodge Hypnosis again in the nick of time, but was nailed by a wave of dark purple energy. "Another Night Shade, Gastly." Reagan instructed.

The floating ball obeyed and rounded off more Night Shades, each time they were dodged by Oshawott. The blue otter kept spinning, ducking, sliding, whatever it could do to avoid the attacks. _He can't keep this up forever… I have to do something, and fast. _Then the idea hit him.

"Oshawott, use the water counter-shield!" Luke called. Oshawott performed the command so fast, it was almost like a second nature to him. The water shield surrounded the otter's body and repelled the incoming Night Shades. One, however, was deflected right back at the Gastly. Panicked, Gastly dodged its own attack. "Now nail it with Water Gun, Oshawott!" Luke shouted.

The Water Gun Oshawott fired connected with Gastly, pushing it back again. Oshawott wouldn't let up one inch, though, and fired more and more. Gastly had no way to counter.

"Just try to counter with Night Shade!" Reagan shouted desperately. Gastly's dark purple wave did in fact stop the Water Gun, giving him time to escape. "Now use Hypnosis!" Again the yellow rings came and this time hit Oshawott. The bipedal otter's eyes grew heavy, and soon Oshawott was asleep. Luke was hopelessly stuck.

_Crap. Oshawott's asleep, and Rufflet has been inflicted with too many statuses for my liking. What do I do now?_

**Meh, I take forever to update, don't I? Oh well, I hope you guys are still reading. :P Forgive me if the chapter was not on par or better with the others, I typed this up in a slight hurry (finals, yay). So, Luke's kinda screwed and could either squeak a win by or lose the battle. Hm, let's see what happens~.**

Levels:  
Oshawott (M) Lvl 15 – Tackle, Tail Whip, Water Sport, Water Gun

**Rufflet (M) Lvl 15 – Peck, Wing Attack, Hone Claws, Fury Attack**

**Also, if you see anything I could do better writing or grammar wise, tell me so I can make this story better for my readers. :D**

**Finally, I'm taking suggestions for Pokémon Luke should get. (Only the first 4)**


	10. Chapter 10

**Chapter 10**

Luke shouted desperately at his starter to wake up, but the slumbering starter wouldn't. All seemed hopeless.

"What luck." Luke muttered.

He tried shouting again, but the otter Pokémon was not stirred. Gastly was preparing his final Night Shade, one that would finish off Oshawott for the rest of the battle. The order came to fire, and Gastly obliged. The dark purple wave came closer and closer to the bipedal otter.

"Oshawott you can do it, WAKE UP!"

Through the depths of his sleep, somehow, someway, Oshawott heard its trainer. The bipedal otter hopped to its feet and blocked the Night Shade with its shell in the nick of time. The force of the impact, however, threw Oshawott into the gym wall and he crashed to the ground. It was too great of an impact. After all of its will to fight, Oshawott was finally down and out. Luke sighed and returned his water Pokémon. "Thank you, Oshawott."

Luke lifted the remaining Poke Ball by his side and clenched it tightly. "Rufflet, it's all up to you!" The eaglet again appeared on the battle field. Because of his withdrawal the curse had dissipated, but the burn lingered still. Rufflet winced as it was sent out. _I must end this quickly, or else this match won't end well for my Pokémon or me._

Reagan laughed. "Gastly, finish it with Night Shade!" The floating ball of gas laughed maniacally and charged up another wave of purple energy. Gastly fired; it seemed to be all over.

"Rufflet dodge!" Luke shouted. Rufflet couldn't, however, the burn hindered its movement yet again. The Night Shade made contact, and the impact threw dust in the air. Luke closed his eyes and sighed in defeat, the match was over. Luke's attention was snapped back to the battlefield when he heard Reagan curse and mumble to himself. Luke looked up and to his surprise Rufflet was still up and about! Luke smiled with joy; Ghost-type moves don't affect Normal-types! Luke mentally cheered.

"Rufflet, use Wing Attack!" Rufflet nodded and charged the Ghost-type, and its wing connected solidly. Gastly fell to the ground. "Now bombard it with Peck!" Rufflet then dive bombed Gastly with a glowing beak. Gastly had no time to dodge, the match was over. Luke leapt up and cheered. The eaglet Pokémon hopped over to him and chirped happily. Luke grinned and returned Rufflet.

"Thank you, Rufflet."

Reagan smiled and walked over to Luke. "That was a nice battle, Luke, thanks for being my opponent. It is with great pleasure that I give you the Spirit Badge."

Luke grabbed the badge from Regan's hand and glanced at it. It was a dark grey badge in the form of a Pac Man ghost with dark purple eyes. Luke smiled and put the Spirit Badge in the badge case.

"Thanks, Regan!" Luke said. Regan smiled wearily and waved as Luke left the gym. _Finally! I have my second badge._

***LATER THAT DAY***

Having just finished his lunch at the Pokémon Center, Luke decided to begin his trip to Virbank City for his third badge. It was a nice sunny day out, perfect for travelling from city to city. Rufflet hopped cheerfully alongside him, scanning the grass around them for any potential Pokémon they could catch. So far they had found none. Luke and Rufflet kept walking until they heard a voice behind them.

"Luke! Wait up!" The voice was feminine, and sounded familiar too. Luke turned around and was greeted by a familiar sight. He smiled.

"Well, well, if it isn't you! I thought I recognized that voice." Luke commented. Lucy nodded.

"Yep, it's me all right. I just got my second badge, and I'm assuming you did too. So, with that said, care to battle?" Lucy opined.

Luke snuck a glance at Rufflet, whose eyes burned with the spirit to battle. Luke smirked. "You're on."

Lucy took out a Poke Ball and threw it. Out of the Poke Ball appeared a small black zebra with white zigzag stripes along its back. Its white mane was lightning bolt shaped, like its tail. It let out a triumphant cry. Luke knew what it was, but registered its data in the Pokedex anyway. It was a Blitzle.

He frowned. Blitzle had an advantage over both his Pokémon. Luke pondered for a moment which Pokémon to choose, and he finally reached a conclusion. Selecting a Poke Ball, he threw it onto the battlefield. Out came Luke's starter Pokémon Oshawott.

Oshawott confidently bopped his shell and smirked at Blitzle. Blitzle neighed back in response.

"Let's begin, then." Lucy suggested. "It's your move."

"Okay then. Oshawott, use Water Sport!"

Lucy caught on quickly. "Blitzle close your eyes!"

The zebra responded quickly, squeezing its eyes shut it a flash. The Water Sport sprayed uselessly onto the ground.

Luke frowned. "Okay then, try a Tackle!" Oshawott dashed towards his opponent, but Blitzle met it with its own Quick Attack. The two Pokémon clashed, but Blitzle, being naturally larger, pushed back the bipedal otter Pokémon.

"Now try a Thunder Wave!" Lucy instructed. The yellow ring of electric energy was loosed from Blitzle's body and flew towards Oshawott. Oshawott hastily leaped through the middle of the ring and rounded off a Water Gun at the zebra. It was a direct hit and Blitzle was sent backwards.

"Now, Oshawott, go for another Water Sport!" Again the small bits of rain came, but again Blitzle closed its eyes. Luke shook his head; clearly the strategy wasn't going to work on Lucy.

"Alright, Blitzle, it's time to finish this! Use your Shock Wave!" Blitzle's body tensed up and crackled with electric energy. The energy was condensed then fire out of its body in the form of a ring. Luke and Oshawott's eyes widened, the attack came faster than expected.

"Hurry, soften the blow with your shell!" Oshawott desperately held out its shell in front of its body like a small shield and it absorbed some of the blow. Oshawott wearily placed the shell back on its body; the super-effective attack did a number on the small Pokémon.

Lucy smirked, this section of the battle was as good as won. "Finish it with Quick Attack, Blitzle!"

Blitzle sprinted at the weary starter, determined to finish Oshawott off for the rest of the battle. As it galloped forward it suddenly slipped and crashed to the ground. Luke smirked and Oshawott cheered; the strategy seemed to have worked perfectly. Oshawott didn't let Blitzle get up and rammed it with Tackle.

Blitzle now was just as weary as Oshawott. Shakily it got to its knees and shook itself free of dirt. Lucy was incredulous. "But how did…? How did Blitzle slip?"

Luke grinned back her. "All along you thought the Water Sport was to blind Blitzle, and I knew you were going to think that. So, Oshawott looked like it was aiming at you, but in reality it had Water Sport hit the ground causing it to become slippery."

Lucy was shocked. _No offense to him but he's smarter than he looks… He's a really good strategist._ Lucy shook her head roughly. _Focus! Keep calm, Lucy, you got this._

Luke smirked. "Alright, Oshawott, finish with Tackle!" Oshawott ran towards the shaky zebra, intent on beating it. Lucy looked on in worry as the water-type was about to crash into her Pokémon. "Blitzle, meet it with Quick Attack!"

Blitzle, too, rushed forward, much faster than Oshawott though. The two crashed into each other, but none gave an inch of ground, the two growled as they fought to end the match between them, because the attack that hit would finish the other. The two struggled back and forth, at one point one Pokémon winning, then the other. Then unexpectedly, to Luke's joy and Lucy's shock, Oshawott glowed white. Oshawott grew taller and became bluer all around. Around its waist it sported two shells, and it also had two pairs of white whiskers on its face. Luke grinned, he had a Dewott.

The newly evolved water Pokémon pushed on, eventually overpowering Blitzle with renewed strength. Blitzle skidded back over to Lucy with swirls for eyes, leaving her with one Pokémon. Luke cheered.

"You did awesome, Dewott!" Luke praised. Lucy smirked though as she reached for her second Poke Ball. "Don't cheer just yet, I still have **my **starter."

Lucy sent out a medium sized fire pig: Pignite. The second stage starter Pokémon snorted fire through its nose and cried out confidently.

Dewott smirked and assumed a fighting position with its scalchops outstretched.

"Pignite doesn't like to kid around, you know." Lucy informed Luke.

"Good, I wouldn't want it any other way!" Luke replied.

"Okay then, Pignite, finish this with Arm Thrust!" Pignite came after Dewott with a glowing palm and thrust it towards Dewott's head. Dewott raised a blade of water in defense.

Luke's Pokedex was flashing, it read: New move learned – Razor Shell. He grinned stupidly.

"Alright, Dewott, you learned Razor Shell! Now, attack Pignite with it!" Dewott brought his other scalchop beside him, turning it into a light blue blade of water, and swung it at the fire pig. Pignite blocked it, however, with another Arm Thrust. The two Pokémon struggled, each trying to overpower the other. Luke looked on in concern.

_Dewott's not gonna be able to keep up much longer…_

"Dewott, push on, I know you can do it!" Dewott gritted its teeth and pushed on, but every time it pushed on Pignite pushed back harder. Eventually the fatigue got to the Discipline Pokémon and the Razor Shell slipped, and Pignite stuck Dewott across the face with an Arm Thrust. Dewott slid over to Luke's feet with swirls for eyes. Luke sighed and returned his newly evolved partner.

"Thank you, Dewott." He mumbled. "Now, Rufflet, it's time to show your power!" Luke's newest catch appeared on the battlefield raring to go. Pignite looked as ready as ever, too.

Lucy wasted no time in giving commands. "Pignite start out with Tackle!" Rufflet, however, was already anticipating an attack and blocked with a fierce Wing Attack. It gave the slightly chubby fire pig an opening, though, and Rufflet was slammed to the ground by an Arm Thrust.

"You've got this, Rufflet, use Hone Claws," came Luke's order. Rufflet concentrated on sharpening its claws; its attack and accuracy were now raised. "Now go for a Wing Attack!"

Rufflet flew at Pignite with an outstretched wing, but was caught and slammed to the ground. Pignite's body then went ablaze and the fire starter rammed the grounded Pokémon. Rufflet was heaving now, barely managing to stand up. Pignite cried its name triumphantly and held its arms up in the air like it was showing off.

Lucy smiled at her Pignite's confidence, and Luke smirked. "Don't count Rufflet out _just _yet," Luke taunted.

"I wouldn't dare, I underestimated your Oshawott and it beat my Blitzle because of that. Now, Pignite, let's wrap this up with Flame Charge!" Again Pignite's body was engulfed in flames and the second stage starter rushed at the Eaglet Pokémon. Rufflet was taken by surprise because Pignite was faster than before. Rufflet looked back to its trainer for support.

Luke smiled at Rufflet. "It's no big deal; it's what Flame Charge does. Now, are you ready to try that new combo we've been working on?" Rufflet nodded and its eyes burned with the determination to win, even if it was at a disadvantage.

The fire and fighting type was drawing closer every second. _ 3… 2… 1…_ "Do it now, Rufflet!" Luke encouraged. Rufflet seemed to smile and then nodded. It dashed at Pignite with equal speed, and just as Pignite was about to crash into Rufflet, the eaglet ducked under the pig. Pignite panicked and turned around, but was met with a flurry of attacks. Rufflet nailed Pignite with blow after blow from its wings, feet, and beak. Finally, Rufflet nailed one good kick and sent Pignite flying upwards. Pignite, not used to being airborne, panicked more and flailed its arms wildly.

"Finish it, Rufflet!" Luke called. Rufflet flew up higher than Pignite, and waited for the starter to come a bit higher. When it did, Rufflet's beak began to glow. Rufflet jabbed its beak into Pignite's torso and began to spin faster and faster until it was a whirlwind of grey, white and blue. The two were sent into a spiral as they were diving to the ground. Pignite screamed in surprised right as the two hit the dust. The impact sent up a large amount of dust everywhere, and the cloud of it covered the Pokémon and their trainers. Lucy gasped.

"Pignite, are you ok?" came Lucy's concerned call.

"Rufflet, you ok buddy?" Luke shouted.

The dust cleared after a minute, and standing there were Pignite and Rufflet. Both panted heavily from the intensity of the impact. After a few silent eternities, it was Rufflet who fell to its knees and blacked out. The battle was over; Lucy had won.

Luke did a half-smile and returned the eaglet Pokémon. _You were awesome, Rufflet, thank you. _Lucy returned her weary Pignite after congratulating it and walked over to Luke. She extended her hand.

"That was a nice match, Luke, your Pokémon were great," she complimented.

Luke beamed back at her and shook her hand. "Thanks, your Pokémon did well too."

It seemed Lucy was about to say something but she bit her lip and stayed quiet. Luke was puzzled; she was clearly debating whether or not to say something.

"Is everything alright?" Luke inquired.

Lucy stayed silent a few moments longer. "Yeah, everything's fine. I was debating something I planned on doing, and I guess I'll do it. Do you want to come with me? I have this place I used to go to when I was little and it's a pretty secretive spot."

_Something seems… off. I'm not sure what though. _"Um sure, Lucy, lead the way," Luke responded.

Lucy smiled. "Alright then, it's this way!"

**So just what does Lucy want to talk about and why such a secretive place? Does she have a secret? Find out next chapter. C:**

**So, how'd this chapter turn out? Am I getting better with battle scenes? (I would hope so, even if just a little bit)**

**Also, I tied an anime reference into Rufflet's finishing move, can you guess what anime?**

**And finally, Luke's Pokémon:**

**Dewott – Male – Level 17 – Water Gun, Razor Shell, Tackle, Water Sport**

**Rufflet – Male – Level 16 – Hone Claws, Wing Attack, Peck, Fury Attack**


	11. Chapter 11

**Chapter 11**

Luke followed Lucy into a nearby patch of trees. They followed the path between the trees until they came to a clearing. The clearing was a perfect circle rimmed with trees. A small cliff was overlooking a pond below. Lucy took a few steps and sat down on the cliff, and Luke follow suit.

"So what is it you wanted to talk about?" Luke questioned.

Lucy ran a hand through her hair and fixed her ponytail before responding. "How is it that you're so good at strategizing?"

_That's not the real reason she wanted me here, but I'll play along. For now…_

"I really don't know," Luke replied, "I don't think I got it from my mom, maybe I inherited it from my dad." Lucy simply nodded.

A silence ensued. "So… How'd you figure out about this place?" Luke asked.

"Well, I used to live in Castelia City with my mom and dad. Every now and then he met some friends here so he took mom and me with him. Mom showed me this spot because she used to go here when she was little," Lucy explained.

"That's pretty cool," Luke commented. Lucy sighed and absently traced random shapes in the grass.

"Did you… ever know your real parents?" It was then Luke realized where the conversation was going.

"I knew my mom, but my dad's never been around. He left my mom a month before I was born…" Luke responded. His voice displayed no hint of emotion whatsoever, but it was clear what he felt when he turned away for a second.

"I never knew any of my parents… My real ones abandoned me once I was born. My adoptive parents in Castelia told me that when I turned thirteen about two years ago."

Then it hit Luke. _This is what she wanted to talk about, this is what seemed off. She just needs someone to share this with, because she feels like people don't understand her or know what it's like. I can't exactly feel what she feels, but I know part of it._

Then another wave of silence hit; this one twice as long as the last. Luke looked over to see Lucy's body racked with sobs. He felt a wave of some kind of feeling go through him. _Sympathy? Sadness? I'm not sure what I'm feeling exactly…_

Whatever it was he felt, Luke felt compelled to do something about it. And he did. Slowly he wrapped his arms around the crying girl and gave her a hug. They sat there like that until she stopped crying. Then came more silence. _I have no idea what the heck I just did that for… _Lucy interrupted Luke's thoughts by wordlessly grabbing Luke's arms and setting them by his side. She stood up and sent him a small appreciative smile.

"Thank you, Luke." That was all Lucy said, then she left.

Luke sighed and sat in the grass as he watched the clouds go by. _That was... awkward to say the least._

***MOMENTS LATER***

After making a quick stop by the Pokémon Center and grabbing a quick bite to eat, Luke was on his way to the next badge city: Virbank. Luke snatched his badge case from his pocket and opened it up to see the two badges he had. He looked at them with a sense of pride because he knew his Pokémon had worked hard for these badges. He gazed at them for a second longer and then pocketed the badge case, and began the journey to Virbank City.

***LATER THAT DAY***

Luke reached Virbank City in almost no time at all. As soon as he hit the city's roads he headed straight to the complex to train. It didn't take long for Luke to feel satisfied with his Pokémon's performance. After a few minutes of perfecting technique, power, etc. Luke and his Pokémon sat down to eat. As they were eating on the outskirts of Viridian, an elderly man walked towards the trio and sat down on the nearby bench.

The elderly man picked up the conversation immediately. "What's your name, son?" the man questioned.

It took Luke a few moments to register that he was the one being asked the question. "Oh, it's Luke, sir."

The man smiled warmly and nodded. "My name's Jamie, it's nice to meet ya, kid."

Luke shifted his position on the ground and reached into his bag upon hearing a buzzing noise. After a few moments Luke pulled out an X-transceiver from his bag. He answered the call.

"Is that you Nathan?" Luke questioned.

From the other end the dark haired trainer smirked. "You bet it is! So, what've you been up to?"

Luke shrugged. "I've been training hard; gonna earn my third badge tomorrow."

Nathan flashed him a thumbs up. "Well, good luck with that battle, Luke, I'll see you around!" Nathan hung up soon after.

Luke put the X-transceiver back into his bag. He then looked back at Jamie with a sheepish grin. "Sorry, sir, I didn't mean to interrupt."

Jamie waved him off. "It's quite alright. So you have a fancy new X-transceiver as well? Ah, I remember back in the old days we had to use real phones, no video like they have today… Those were the good ole days… Anyway, you're thinking about challenging the gym? If so, I'll tell you this: it's a ground gym. Good luck, Luke, and have a nice day!"

With that, Jamie walked away and waved. Luke waved back and soon Jamie was out of sight. Next to him he heard Oshawott and Rufflet's cries.

"Yeah, I'm tired, too." Luke replied. He stood up. "Well, we're good on training for today, guys. Let's go chill out, alright?" The Pokémon trainer received happy cheers in response.

"Ok, then let's go."

***AFTER TWO HOURS OF ROAMING***

Hours later, Luke and his Pokémon wearily sat down at a Pokémon Center table. They had looked around Virbank City for an hour, then trained for another, and were utterly tired. They rented a room in the Pokémon Center for the night, and as soon as they had the chance, they dozed off with thoughts of the upcoming Gym Battle in mind.

***THE NEXT DAY***

Luke and his team were excited about the Gym Battle; they were going to get their third badge! As they walked into the gym, they saw a bald older man with liver spots all over across the battlefield. He wore a white dress shirt, brown trousers, a golden brown sweater, and dark brown dress shoes. He looked at Luke with wise hazel eyes.

"Hello there, Luke," the man said with a small smile.

Luke was a bit surprised; he didn't know it would be _him._

"I guess I should've figured out it was you, Jamie," Luke responded.

Jamie shrugged. "Perhaps you should have. Well, are you ready to take me on? If so, I do a single battle and give you the choice of 1, 2, or 3 Pokémon each."

Luke pondered that for a moment. Should he just get it over with and do a one on one using Oshawott? Or should he do two on two just in case? After a minute of deciding, Luke reached his conclusion.

"I'll go with one on one, Jamie." Luke tossed a Poke Ball onto the battlefield, but not what Jamie expected. Out appeared Rufflet.

"So you chose Rufflet, eh? Okay then, Drilbur, it's your turn."

Out of the Poke Ball appeared a brown mole Pokémon with a white snout and claws. It had blue markings across its body. Luke gulped; it was time for the Gym Battle.

"Drilbur, use Metal Claw!" Drilbur's claws turned metallic and shiny as the mole Pokémon ran at Rufflet.

"Dodge!" Luke called.

Rufflet leapt away before Drilbur could hit, bit the mole Pokémon jumped up and nailed the eaglet. Rufflet hit the ground, but easily got up again. Drilbur went in for another Metal Claw but Rufflet blocked it with Peck. As the two moves clashed, Rufflet slammed its wing into Drilbur's side on Luke's orders, and then knocked it away with Fury Attack.

"Don't give up, Drilbur, use Fury Swipes!" Jamie instructed.

"Counter it with Wing Attack!"

The two moves met, one a glowing claw, the other a glowing wing. The two struggled to gain the advantage; that is until Drilbur used its free claw to nail Rufflet with Fury Swipes. Two more swipes sent Rufflet skidding backwards. Rufflet wasn't given time to recover, however, as Drilbur careened into the eaglet with a Rapid Spin attack. Rufflet managed to hold Drilbur in place though, and when it lost momentum Rufflet smacked it feet away with Fury Attack.

"Nice, Rufflet, you remembered the strategy!" Luke praised. "Now hold on a bit longer, we can do this."

Rufflet nodded determinedly. Despite the willingness to continue on, Rufflet was starting to get tired, and so was Drilbur. The next few good attacks that connected were going to be the last ones.

"Rufflet, use Hone Claws."

"Drilbur, don't let them do it, use Metal Claw!" Jamie countered. Drilbur raised his gleaming claws at Rufflet and swiped, nailing the eaglet Pokémon (luckily after finishing Hone Claws). On Luke's command, Rufflet took to the air.

Drilbur seemed to smirk and without thought leapt up at Rufflet preparing to use Fury Swipes. Right as the claw was about to hit, Drilbur began falling and crashed to the ground.

'_So he figured out how high Drilbur can jump, eh? Well, he has to come and attack Drilbur at some point, so I'll wait'. _Jamie thought.

Luke sighed and ran a hand through his hair, he had to act fast.

"Rufflet, swoop down with a Wing Attack!"

The eaglet Pokémon swooped down upon Drilbur with surprising speed with its wings spread. Right when Rufflet was going to careen into Drilbur, Drilbur used Rapid Spin and threw off Rufflet's angle! Rufflet went crashing to the ground and rolled a few feet. Rufflet shook it off and took to the air again; he knew Luke needed time to think.

"Clever of you, Jamie," Luke opined.

Jamie nodded. "You're not half bad a strategist either, kid."

Luke sighed, just what was he supposed to do now?

**Alright, I'm wrapping it up. I know this chapter's a short one, but I feel like I should stop it here. I haven't updated in forever either. _ So I hope I still have readers and that you guys are enjoying the ff. *Possible silence and/or cricket chirps***

**Luke's Pokémon:**

**Dewott – Level 18 – Razor Shell, Water Gun, Tackle, Water Sport.**

**Rufflet – Level 18 – Wing Attack, Fury Attack, Hone Claws, Peck.**


End file.
